Consumer feedback apparatus

ABSTRACT

A consumer feedback apparatus for collecting, analyzing, and reporting information on goods and services offered for sale to consumers by providers, comprising a recording station selectively operable by consumers for recording oral comments regarding goods and services offered by the providers. The oral comments and associated time signals are communicated to an analyzer for creating discrete normalized representations including comment category, at least one descriptor, at least one dimension, and an attitude, representative of each oral comment. Normalized comments are then selected according to the comment category, descriptor, dimension, attitude, and time signal, and analyzed for reporting to the provider for use in responding to perceptions of consumers as to the services and goods offered by the store to consumers. A method of collecting, analyzing, and reporting consumer feedback comments on goods and services offered for sale to consumers by retailers is disclosed.

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/167,830, filed Oct. 7,1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,026,387, which is a continuation of Ser. No.08/683,612, filed Jul. 15, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,822,744.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to apparatus or communicating comments byconsumers to providers of goods and services. More particularly, thepresent invention relates to an apparatus and method that collects,analyzes, and reports consumer comments for responding to consumerperceptions about the goods and services offered by providers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Monitoring of consumer satisfaction and perceptions about goods andservices provided by retailers is becoming increasingly important. Theimportance of such information arises from the competitive nature ofretail delivery of high quality products and services. Consumerexpectations generate demand for high quality in the products andservices being delivered. Companies which provide high quality productsand services to customers readily measure their success by increasedprofitability. Studies have reported that excellent customer serviceadds as much as twelve percent to profit margins. Repeated failures atcustomer service, or worse, consumer perceptions of failures to deliverquality customer service and goods can lead to mediocre economicperformance and to possible failure of the provider as a businessentity. Recognition of the importance of customer service has led anumber of providers of goods and services to emphasize commitments tocustomer service in their advertising and promotional materialsdistributed to consumers. To consumer-oriented organizations, the lossof even one customer is significant. Researchers have found that itcosts up to five times as much to acquire a new customer as it does tokeep an existing one. A 5% increase in customer retention can lead to asmuch as a 30% improvement in earnings. Other studies have shown thatonly 4% of dissatisfied customers complain; the significant majoritymerely leave the store, and of these 91% of the dissatisfied do notreturn. In order to avoid losing a customer or a potential customer,providers recognize they must acquire and respond to feedback ofconsumers regarding satisfaction and perceptions of the products andservices delivered by the provider.

The failure to obtain consumer feedback and to respond can be a problemhaving an unknown scale for a provider. For example, an unhappy customeris particularly more likely to complain about a “bad” experience than isa consumer likely to talk to friends and acquaintances about a “good”experience. It is estimated that a single bad experience with a providercan be communicated up to ten or more friends and acquaintances.Generally each of these individuals repeats the description of the badexperience to additional numbers of people. Each of these secondarycontacts often repeats the description of the experience, as bestrecalled, to other individuals at a tertiary level from the directexperience. The spreading story of the one disgruntled consumer caneasily reach a hundred or more potential consumers. Accordingly, it isrecognized as better for providers that the customer complain to themanagement of the provider than to the customer's friends. This enablesthe provider to respond to the particular issue and to head off thespread of generally unfavorable comments regarding the provider.

There are a variety of mechanisms to meet the needs of providers toreceive comments from consumers. One mechanism is to use independentmarket research firms to collect consumer comments as feedback of theperformance of the provider. Many marketing research firms offerspecialized programs in measurement of customer service. These researchfirms also consult, implement, and operate customer response systems onbehalf client providers.

Obtaining customer comments for analysis, and reporting of same to theproviders, takes many different forms. One of the most recognizable andwidely used mechanisms is the use of comment cards, which are typicallyfound at consumer service desks or at point-of-sales areas. Often thesecards provide a simple check list of topics of interest to the retailer,such as customer service, product selection, and the like, with severaldescriptive adjectives or a ranking system using a range of numbers inorder to rate the provider, its products, or its services, on a rangefrom low to high, poor to excellent. For example, the ranking for eachof the selected categories may be “poor”, “less than satisfactory”,“satisfactory”, “excellent” which may also be reflective of a numericalrange of 1 to 4 inclusive. The cards typically provide space for theconsumer to write an individualized comment. The benefit of a commentcard is capturing the near-spontaneous thoughts of the consumer, withoutreliance on face-to-face interaction between the consumer and arepresentative of the provider. Often, the comment cards are completedat the provider's location, so the reported information often is sentquickly back to management. Cards however have drawbacks which limittheir use. The time and effort spent by the consumer to find responsecards and to write comments often is a deterrent, which can lead tofurther dissatisfaction. The cards thus may be perceived by the consumeras such a sufficient obstacle that the comment is never delivered.Studies have shown that the rate of comment card usage can be as low asone one hundredth of one percent (of consumers entering the store) orlower. It is believed that consumers may also view the cards withskepticism because there is little assurance to the consumer that theinformation reported will be acted upon by the provider. Further,processing card information is laborious and it is cost intensive tocollect, report and act on the information.

A computer kiosk having a touch-sensitive screen is a recentsophisticated alternate to comment cards. These devices benefit frombeing interactive and relatively easy to operate, but still require asmuch as 5-8 minutes of the consumer's time to register a comment.Typically, the consumer is directed through a menu of options dependingon responses to previous questions. The screen attracts attention frompassersby and not just those who feel strongly enough to volunteeropinions or comments. As with comment cards, computer kiosks haveseveral drawbacks. Such kiosk stations are expensive and can cost$20,000 or more apiece, depending on level of sophistication. Thequestionnaire-style formats are relatively inflexible, in that questionsare pre-determined and leave little opportunity or means for addressingor learning the specific concerns of the particular consumer.Questionnaires typically provide a list of subjects or topics and theconsumer touches the screen at appropriate places in order to registergeneral satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the performance of theprovider for that subject or topic area. Further, some consumers may bereluctant to use new technology for registering comments or not want tocommit the time required to operate the kiosk. Also, invalid data can begenerated, in part due to the successful attention-attracting feature ofthe kiosk. Persons may enter responses just for the activity of usingthe system. Another important source of consumer comments is thecustomer service desk. The functions performed at the customer servicedesk primarily include merchandise return and exchange, packaging, anddelivery of merchandise with the attendant responsibility of handling ofcustomer complaints. A primary benefit of an active customer servicedesk is the personal interaction provided by the representative of theprovider and the potential ability to address immediately the needs orperceptions of the consumer. However, customer service desks generallyincur difficulty in operating as an effective recipient or processor ofcustomer feedback. While the clerks may listen to the comments byconsumers, and even take steps to respond to complaints, providers oftenlack formally documented procedures to record consumer concerns andsuggestions and respond to such. Thus it may be difficult to identifyprovider-wide characteristics that need the attention and response ofmanagement. Also, due to locations of such service desks, and timeconstraints on both the consumer and clerks, customer service desksusually are ineffective in promoting casual feedback from consumers.Casual feedback often may be the most important information forproviders because casual comments relate strongly to thenear-simultaneous perception of the consumer which is being recorded inthat environment. Also, a focus on comment feedback collection andprocessing is often overlooked due to the other critical functions theconsumer service desk also provides.

Related to the collection and processing of consumer comments by acustomer service desk are in-house customer help lines, personalinteraction, and toll free consumer response telephone lines. Anin-store help line connects the consumer with a representative of theprovider at the point of purchase. Comments can be acted uponimmediately. However, consumers often have to wait for attention oncethe call has been acknowledged by the representative, and the relativeinaccessibility of help lines tends to hinder consumer response rates.Personal interaction either through the help line or direct in-storecontact often has the benefit of resolving the customer concern at thetime of occurrence. Personal interaction involves management oremployees of the provider interacting with customers to ensuresatisfaction. Often this is a function of the day-to-day activities ofmanagement and sales personnel of the provider. The benefits include thepossibility of the immediate action to address the concerns of theconsumer, the personal nature of the interaction and response, employeeinvolvement in resolving consumer concerns, and the resulting potentialto reinforce positive perceptions of the providers commitment to serviceand its responsiveness. Satisfactory personal interaction however, maybe difficult to achieve. Responses satisfactory to the consumer dependupon the personal abilities and characteristics of the personnelhandling the comments. Further, the representative may lack theauthority to implement a solution to the consumers comment. Incorrectresponses from improperly trained employees can be detrimental.Toll-free consumer lines are commonly perceived as a court of lastresort which allow management to listen to local experiences. Thesetoll-free calls also afford the consumer a non-confrontational venue toregister complaints or comments. However, the toll-free numbers candeflect comments that should properly be handled by the local provider.Also, there is an inherent delay between the occurrence of which theconsumer wishes to comment and the placing of the telephone call toregister the comment, and the time necessary to register a comment isalso a deterrent. These factors tend to reduce comments, except from themost determined.

Market research firms are capable of providing severalcomment-soliciting devices, including survey and questionnaires foranalysis by consumers, focus groups, and mystery shoppers. The benefitof surveys are the ability to focus on precise aspects of the shoppingexperience. Surveys generally prompt consumers about shoppingexperiences. Surveys and questionnaire responses however are only asgood as the particular questions involved. They often yield onlypre-determined multiple choice answers, similar to the computer kiosk orconsumer comment card. A significant drawback is that surveys rarelycapture spontaneous customer thoughts regarding services and products.Rather they tend to record and report an overall impression by thecustomer of the different facts of services and products. Similarly,focus groups generally consist of a small number of selected individualswho provide feedback on various market activities of concern to theprovider. Focus groups can provide in-depth analysis of particularproblems identified by the provider for investigation as well asproviding a range of opinions obtained from the participants. Focusgroups however fail to obtain spontaneous feedback. Other limits of thevalidity of the results obtained from focus groups include the forcedsolicitation of feedback, moderator biases, expense, time, and theartificial environment. Mystery shoppers can be provided either directlyby the store or by a consulting organization. Mystery shopping howeverdoes not rely on specific customer reactions after reaching a thresholdlevel so it is not biased towards collecting negative feedback. Further,mystery shopping provides only one particular individual's point ofview, which may be limited and is potentially biased. Further, theindividual involved may be desensitized to certain aspects of theshopping experience that actual customers might react to. The use ofmystery shoppers is a relatively expensive and inefficient form ofobtaining indirect customer feedback.

It is thus seen that a need exists for improving the collection,analysis, and reporting of consumer perceptions for management ofproviders to use in evaluating delivery of goods and services toconsumers. It is to the provision of such that the present invention isprimarily directed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention meets the need in the art by providing a consumerfeedback apparatus for collecting, analyzing and reporting informationon goods and services offered for sale to consumers by providers. Thefeedback apparatus comprises at least one recorder located at a providerof goods and services for a plurality of consumers and having storagemeans for holding a collection of discrete oral comments from at leastone of said plurality of consumers regarding the goods and services. Atime signal representative of a date and time is associated with eachdiscrete oral comment. A communicator communicates the collection ofdiscrete oral comments from the recorder to an analyzer which creates anormalized representation comprising a comment category, at least onedescriptor, at least one dimension, an attitude, and the time signal, ofeach discrete oral comment. A reporter selects and reports normalizedrepresentations based on selected comment category, descriptor,dimension, attitude, and time signal. The report generated by thereporter provides information to the provider for responding toperceptions of consumers to its delivery of services and its goods.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a method of analyzingand reporting consumer perceptions regarding the services and goodsoffered by a provider. In the method, consumers selectively record on atleast one recording station one or more oral comments about goods andservices offered by a provider. A time signal representative of a dateand time is associated with each discrete oral comment. The recordedoral comments and time signal are communicated from the recordingstation to an analyzer which creates a discrete normalizedrepresentation associated with each oral comment, including a commentcategory, at least one descriptor, at least one dimension, and anattitude. Selected normalized representations are then analyzed based oncategory, descriptor, dimension, attitude, and time signal, and a reportis generated. The report generated by analyzing the selected normalizedrepresentations provides information for the provider to use inresponding to consumer perceptions about the goods and services.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of the architecture of the consumerfeedback apparatus of the present invention for collecting, analyzingand reporting consumer comments on goods and services offered for saleto consumers.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a recording station used in the consumerfeedback apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a interactive screen used for normalizing the raw consumercomment recording at the recording station in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a computer screen used for selecting normalized comments foranalysis.

FIG. 5 is a representative report of analyzed normalized comments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring now in more detail to the drawings in which like numeralsindicate like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 illustrates inblock diagram form a schematic of the architecture of the preferredembodiment of a consumer feedback apparatus 10 according to the presentinvention for collecting, analyzing, and reporting consumer comments ongoods and services offered for sale to consumers by a provider. Theprovider locates a comment receiving station 12 in a convenient locationfor consumers to selectively operate 14 a recorder for receiving oralcomments from the consumer C. After the comment is recorded by theconsumer C, a date and time is associated 16 with the comment. Therecording station 12 includes a storage device for recording a pluralityof comments from one or more consumers C. In a preferred embodiment, therecording station includes a digital telephone message recording device.Such devices typically include a date and time “stamp” for recordedmessages. In an alternate embodiment of the apparatus 10, the providerassigns to consumers a unique identifier 11. The consumer C enters theidentification code selectively upon recording the comment 16 and uponmaking purchases. In this way, the provider tracks the comments andpurchasing activity of the commentor. The collection of oral commentswith the time stamp and consumer identification 11 are then communicated18 to an analyzer for analysis and recording on a data base.

Each discrete oral comment by a consumer C is analyzed 20 and anormalized representation is created. Normalized representations includecomment factors 22 comprising a comment category 24, at least onedescriptor 26, at least one dimension 28, and an attitude 30. Thecomment factors 22 are used to convert the raw oral comments intouseable information about goods and services i.e., for statisticalanalysis, whether the comment is a compliment, complaint, or idea forimprovement as discussed below. The normalized representation ispreferably stored on a database driven by a microprocessor computer 32which includes a display screen, microprocessor, a keyboard, and amouse-type entry device. Using a reporter 34, normalized representationsare selected according to the category, descriptor, dimension, attitude,and time, for reporting 36 information to the provider for responding toperceptions of consumers about delivery and execution of services andgoods and for monitoring levels of customer satisfaction according to aprovider-defined index.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an illustration of the recording station12. In the illustrated embodiment, the recording station 12 is a standalone apparatus having a base 40 from which a pedestal 42 extendsupwardly to support a housing 44 for the recording apparatus. A recorderis held in the housing 44 and a microphone 46 is attached to a frontplate 48 of the housing 44. In the illustrated embodiment, a lamp 50illuminates when the recorder is in operation. The front panel includespromotional information and instructions for use of the recorder. In theillustrated embodiment a foot pedal 52 is pivotally connected at one end54 to the base 40. The foot pedal 52 is biased to an off-position and ismovable to an actuated position, whereby the recorder in the housing 44is operated. In an alternate embodiment (not illustrated), the recordingstation 12 mounts to a wall, with a push on/off switch affixed to theface of the recording. In the alternate embodiment in which consumeridentification numbers 11 are tracked, the recording station 12 includesan entry device 51, such as a numeric keypad, a bar code scanner, or amagnetic swipe card reader. Using the keypad, the consumer enters theparticular identification number. A bar code card with the consumeridentification number is read by the bar code scanner. A card with themagnetically encoded identification number is passed through a reader.These devices activate the recorder for receiving comments.

In a preferred embodiment, the recorder connects by a telephone wire 56to a telephone communications system, such as a PBX. In this manner, therecording station 12 is assigned its own telephone extension number.This facilitates dial capability for selectively communicating therecorded collection of oral comments from the recorder to the analyzer20, as discussed below.

FIG. 3 is an interactive display screen used for normalizing the rawconsumer comments recorded at the recording station illustrated in FIG.2. According to the present invention, the raw comment is analyzed andconverted to a normalized representation comprising a comment category,at least one descriptor, at least one dimension and an attitude. Thesecharacteristics facilitate handling and dealing with large amounts ofnon-uniform, subjective comments and impressions covering products,services, and facilities of the provider. These characteristics providea hierarchial means for analyzing and reporting comments by consumers.The interactive screen 60 includes site identification informationgenerally designated 62. In the illustrated embodiment, the siteinformation 62 includes a store number 64, a store name 66, and astation number which identifies the particular recording station 12 atwhich the raw comment was recorded. For example, larger stores may useseveral recording stations 12 placed at several separate locations inthe store. Each comment is assigned a sequential comment number 70 forpurposes of tracking and correlating the normalized representation withthe original raw comment. The screen also displays the date 72 and thetime 74 that the raw comment 76 was recorded.

The normalized comment is then assigned to one of the comment categories78 in a selectable field shown on the screen 60. In a preferredembodiment, a cursor on the microprocessor 32 is moved to the selectedcategory and actuated to set the comment category. Table 1 below liststhe comment categories in the illustrated embodiment for trackingconsumer comments regarding goods and services provided by a retaildepartment store.

TABLE 1 COMMENT CATEGORIES Category Description Product Products sold bythe store Service Services of the store, including sales persons,delivery persons, and customer service staff Physical Physical aspectsof the store, including location, accessibility, appearance and the likeManage- Aspects of the management of the store including policies andment procedures practiced by the store and its employees OtherMiscellaneous comments not otherwise classified

Each raw comment is also analyzed for determining at least onedescriptor 80. The descriptors identify or name the subject matter ofthe comment. In the illustrated embodiment, a hierarchy of descriptorsmay be selected in order to more specifically identify the subjectmatter of the comment. Table 2 shows a list of descriptors for thecomment categories described above for department stores, together withdefinitions of the descriptors. In the illustrated embodiment, theanalyzed descriptors are typed into the appropriate descriptor field 80.In a preferred embodiment, the cursor of the microprocessor computer 32is positioned on a field identifier 81, and the cursor is actuated bypressing a switch on the conventional mouse device attached to thecomputer. This causes a window to open on the screen 60, for displayingan alphabetical list of predetermined potential entries for theparticular field. For example, the selectable departments for adepartment store include, but are not limited to, fashion, junior,linens, mens wear, toddlers, and so forth.

TABLE 2 DESCRIPTORS FOR COMMENT CATEGORIES CATE- GORY/ DES- CRIPTORSDEFINITION EXAMPLE Product Department Sales department subject of theMen's comment Product Generic name of the product subject Suits of thecomment Provider Name of the manufacturer or brand Giovanni name of theproduct Type Description of the product Blue, plaid, Wool, in “46 short”Service Department Sales department subject of the comment Men's TypeType of service subject of the comment Sales service Provider Name ofthe person(s) or department subject of the comment Physical DepartmentName of department subject of the Men's comment Management DepartmentSales department subject of the comment Men's Provider Name of person(s)subject of comment Policy Rules which management has imposed ReturnsOther Place Place in store subject of the comment Restrooms SubjectSubject of the comment Sinks

Further, each comment 76 is characterized as to its dimension 82. Thedimension characteristic identifies the problem or issue presented inthe raw comment regarding the descriptor. The dimension characteristicrelates to the quality, availability, price, knowledge, accessibility,appearance, or other attributes or aspects of a comment descriptor.

Table 3 below lists the dimension characteristics and definitions forthe categories used in the illustrated embodiment of the presentinvention for a department store.

TABLE 3 EXAMPLES OF DIMENSION CHARACTERISTICS FOR COMMENT DESCRIPTORSWITHIN EACH CATEGORY Category/ Dimension Definition Product Quality Thecondition or quality of the products Availability The availability ofthe product - too many, too few Price Price in terms of perceived valueService Availability Whether the service sought by the consumer wasavailable Courtesy The behavior of the service provider Knowledge Theresponsiveness and ability of the provider to provide the servicePhysical Accessibility Buildings and facilities Appearance Commentsregarding appearance, i.e., cleanliness Management Availability Whethera person is accessible Knowledge Responsiveness and ability of providerOther Quality Quality of product or service Availability Miscellaneouscomments on availability of goods or services

Finally, each comment 76 is assigned an attitude characteristic 84 whichprovides an indicator of the overall attitude expressed in the oralcomment 76 by the consumer. For example, attitudes in the illustratedembodiment are “poor”, “non-existent”, “good”, “desired”, and“excellent”, which describe a range of possible consumer attitudestowards the comment descriptors and dimensions described above.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the analysis of the rawcomment 76 is conducted by a transcriber who has knowledge of thepredetermined list of comment categories, descriptors, dimensions, andattitudes. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, raw comment 76 “Ithink you need to offer a greater variety of Liz Clairborne sweaters insmalls and mediums” is analyzed to a normalized representation “Consumerdesires a variety of sizes in Liz Claiborne sweaters in sportswear”. Inalternate embodiments of the present invention, the categories 24, thedescriptors 26, the dimensions 28, and the attitudes 30 are defined torelate to the particular provider involved, so that the informationgenerated from the spontaneous comments of the consumers is tailored tothe needs of the provider.

As discussed above, in a preferred embodiment, the transcriber uses a“mouse”-type entry device on the microprocessor computer 32 to select orhighlight the characteristic being evaluated. Highlighting thecharacteristic brings up a window which displays the availablepredetermined list of terms for that characteristic. The analyzerselects the terms that best reflects the characteristic of the commentbeing normalized.

In an alternate embodiment, a digital representation of the raw oralcomment is scanned by a semi-automatic analyzer implemented on themicroprocessor. This analyzer includes a database of digitalrepresentations of the predetermined list of terms, or words associatedwith each characteristic in normalized representations. Each digitizedterm is compared with the digitized patterns of the raw comments. If theterm is located within the digitized pattern of the raw comment, theterm is entered into field for the appropriate normalized representationcharacteristic. The preliminary scan and analysis by comparing digitalpatterns reduces the time and work required of transcribers to analyzeand create the normalized representations of the oral comments.

The normalized comment shown on the screen 60 is thereafter recorded ina database accessible through the microprocessor computer 32. In apreferred embodiment, the database is a commercially availablerelational database, such as ACCESS brand database software provided byMicrosoft, Inc. FIG. 4 illustrates a computer screen display 90 used forselecting normalized comments for analysis and reporting. The screenincludes fields for entry of identifiers and defined terms by which thenormalized comments can be selected and evaluated. The inquiry screen 90includes a pair of fields 92 and 93 for identifying a store or group ofstores for which reports are to be generated. A single store identifieris entered in field 92 to select those comments received from oneparticular store. Entering a second store identifier in field 93 enablesthe apparatus to select and compare, i.e., compare comments from onestore to those from all stores, or compare one store with another, forthe identifiers entered in 92 and 93. The period for which data isselected is set by entering dates in begin date field 94 and the enddate field 96. If no date is entered in either field, all comments areselected. If only a begin date is entered in field 94, comments on andafter that date are selected for reporting. If only an end data isentered in field 96, comments prior to that date are selected.

In the illustrated embodiment, comments from consumers are also trackedby time, and can be analyzed by entering a desired time in the beginningtime field 98 and the end time field 100. As with the date fields 94 and96, if no time is entered, all comments for the dates entered in fields94 and 96 are selected. If only a beginning time is entered in field 98,comments on and after that time for the dates are selected forreporting. If only an end time is entered in field 100, only commentsprior to that time for each date are selected.

The report selection screen 90 also includes comment category selectionfields 102 for selecting the category of comments to be analyzed andreported on. The descriptor fields 104 provide for selecting thecategory descriptors for analysis. If no descriptor is entered, alldescriptor comments are selected. Similarly, entries may be made in thedimension fields 106 to select only comments of the particulardimensions entered. If no entry is made, all dimensions of comments areselected for analysis and reporting. The type of attitude to be selectedand analyzed is entered in an attitude field 108. If no attitude isentered, all attitudes will be selected and analyzed.

A query submission button 110 on the screen is activated, in order totransmit the entered selected fields to the selection and reportingapparatus. Upon completion of the selection and analysis, the queryscreen 90 reports the number of comments analyzed 110 and the percentageof comments involved 112. Conventional commands are used to direct tieapparatus 10 to print the analysis for review and action or to displaythe analysis on a computer video terminal. Although not illustrated, theembodiment of the apparatus 10 tracking comments by consumer includes anentry field for selecting the consumer identification number, foranalysis and reporting.

Further, it is noted that the predetermined list of descriptions,dimensions, and attitudes can be displayed in one embodiment of theapparatus 10, by placing the cursor on the particular field for thecharacteristic and actuating the cursor conventionally by pressing abutton on the mouse device of the computer 32.

FIG. 5 is a representative report illustrating information analyzed fromselected normalized comments. The report includes a heading 120 whichidentifies the selected stores 122 and period 124. The number ofcomments and attitude for each category are listed (generally 126). Thereport includes summaries of the normalized comments and analysis(generally 128) as well as a reference number 130. The reference number130 is selected for displaying the raw comments for which the particularsummary of normalized comments is shown. For example, reference numeral1 relates to the summary of normalized comment “Selkoni brand watches inthe jewelry department have a poor image.” The report shows that 5 rawcomments were used to generate this summary. Further, when the report isdisplayed on a computer screen, the raw comments can be selectivelydisplayed as at 132 in order to see the oral comments that were analyzedto become the normalized representations shown in the report. Based onthe reports, providers can direct attention to resolving the problemsidentified by the spontaneous comments of consumers for the goods andservices of the provider. In alternate embodiments, reports areavailable through Internet access to a home page maintained by theanalyzer of the data. Audible presentation of original comments isprovided over a telephone connection or through the Internet. Periodicroutine reports are transmitted through E-mail, fax, or on computerdisk.

The consumer feedback apparatus 10 of the present invention is used bylocating at least one comment receiving station 12 at a provider ofgoods and services. In a preferred embodiment, the receiving station 12is connected to a discrete telephone line for remote access to therecorder. A consumer approaches the recording station 12 and depressesthe foot pedal 52. The pedal pivots from its biased off position to anactuated position, whereby the recorder in the housing 44 is operated.The consumer speaks into the microphone 46 which communicates signalsrepresentative of the spoken comment by the consumer to the recorder. Ina preferred embodiment, the recording is made digitally. The date andtime of the recording is associated with each comment. A lamp 50illuminates to indicate that the recorder is in operation. In analternate embodiment, the station 12 is activated by a hand-pushedbutton or a voice-actuated microphone.

Periodically, the collection of recorded comments is communicated 18from the recorder 42 to the analyzer 20. The preferred embodiment, theanalyzer is contained within a microprocessor computer 32 which accessesthe recorder. The recorded oral comments are communicated to themicroprocessor for storage and analysis. In reference to FIG. 3, eachdiscrete consumer comment 76 is displayed on an interactive screen forcreating a normalized representation of the comment. Based upon theanalysis of the comment, the normalized representation is created,including the comment category 78, at least one descriptor 80, at leastone dimension 82, and the attitude of the comment 84. The normalizedcomment is stored in a database accessible to the computer 32. Each oralcomment contains the unique identifier 70 which correlates the commentwith the normalized representation.

The normalized representations may then be analyzed and reported to theprovider for responding to consumer perceptions regarding goods andservices offered by the provider. In reference to FIG. 4, appropriateselection criteria are entered to the inquiry screen 90. The store orgroup of stores for which reports are to be generated are indicated infields 92. The time period of comments to be analyzed is selected byentering the dates in the date fields 94 and 96. All of the normalizedcomments for the selected store or dates may be analyzed and reported.Similarly, categories, descriptors, dimensions, and attitudes may beselected for reporting in order to develop meaningful information foruse by the provider responding to customer perceptions of the goods andservices. The analyzed comments may selectively be displayed on acomputer screen or printed 36.

In an alternate embodiment, the consumer feedback apparatus 10 uses amicrophone which is linked directly to a microprocessor 32 for directvoice-to-text conversion and/or loading of the database at the time theconsumer is making the comment. In another alternate embodiment, theconsumer speaks directly by telephone to a transcriber which analyzesthe comment as set forth above. Other devices can be used for enteringcomments by consumers, including a keyboard, touch screen, electronicpad for hand-written comments, and the like. Such embodiments mayrequire a screen/display for visual feedback of the entry of the commentby the consumer.

The foregoing has disclosed an improved consumer feedback apparatus forcollecting analyzing and reporting information on goods and servicesoffered for sale to consumers. It should be understood that the abovedescribed embodiments generally illustrate principles of the inventionin preferred forms. Many modifications, additions, and deletions, may,of course, may be made thereto without departure from the spirit andscope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A consumer feedback apparatus for collecting,analyzing, and reporting information on goods and services offered to aplurality of consumers by a provider of goods and services, comprising:a kiosk stand for being located at a provider of goods and services to aplurality of consumers for collecting at least one oral comment from atleast one of said plurality of consumers; a touch-sensitive videodisplay screen attached to said kiosk stand for being selectivelyoperated by said at least one consumer; a controller operatively engagedto the display screen for displaying operational instructions forcollecting said oral comment from said at least one consumer; acommunicator for communicating said collected oral comment to ananalyzer for creating a normalized representation of said collected oralcomment, said normalized representation comprising a comment category,at least one descriptor, at least one dimension, an attitude, saidanalyzer remote from said kiosk stand; and a reporter for reporting saidnormalized representation in a usable format, said normalizedrepresentation selected based on at least one of said comment category,descriptor, dimension, and attitude, whereby said reporter providesusable information to the provider for responding to said oral comment.2. The consumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim 1, furthercomprising a recorder for recording said oral comment collected fromsaid at least one consumer.
 3. The consumer feedback apparatus asrecited in claim 1, further comprising means for associatingautomatically a time signal representative of a date and time with eachdiscrete oral comment, which time signal is included with saidnormalized representations.
 4. The consumer feedback apparatus asrecited in claim 1, further comprising means for the provider remotefrom the analyzer to generate reports of selected normalizedrepresentations.
 5. The consumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim1, further comprising a computer-based storage means for holding saidoral comment and said normalized representation.
 6. The consumerfeedback apparatus as recited in claim 5, further comprising means forthe provider remote from the storage means to generate reports ofselected normalized representations.
 7. The consumer feedback apparatusas recited in claim 1, wherein the analyzer comprises a fuzzy-logicanalyzer for interpreting each oral comment and creating the normalizedrepresentation.
 8. The consumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim1, further comprising means for associating each oral comment with thesaid one of the plurality of consumers.
 9. The consumer feedbackapparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said recorder includes meansfor associating a unique code representative of the said one of theplurality of consumers making said oral comment, whereby comments byspecific consumers can be tracked.
 10. A method of collecting,analyzing, and reporting consumer feedback on goods and services offeredfor sale to consumers, comprising the steps of: (a) collecting one ormore oral comments by at least one of a plurality of consumers at aprovider of goods and services, said oral comment received interactivelyby operation of at least one station with a touch-sensitive videodisplay; (b) communicating the collected oral comments from the stationto an analyzer; (c) creating a discrete normalized representationassociated with each oral comment, said normalized representationcomprising useable information from the oral comment about the goods andservices subject of the oral comment; (d) storing the discretenormalized representation; (e) selecting normalized representations foranalysis; and (f) generating a report of the selected normalizedrepresentations, whereby the report generated by analyzing the selectednormalized representations provides useable information for the providerto use in responding to consumer perceptions about the goods andservices.
 11. The method of collecting, analyzing, and reportingconsumer feedback as recited in claim 10, further comprising the step ofrecording the collected oral comment for communicating in step (c) at apredetermined time with other collected oral comments.
 12. The method ofcollecting, analyzing, and reporting consumer feedback as recited inclaim 10, wherein the analyzer creates useable information including acomment category, at least one descriptor, at least one dimension, andan attitude, representative of said discrete oral comment.
 13. Themethod of collecting, analyzing, and reporting consumer feedback asrecited in claim 12, wherein the selection is based on at least one ofthe comment category, descriptor, dimension, and attitude, of thenormalized representations.
 14. The method of collecting, analyzing, andreporting consumer feedback as recited in claim 12, wherein the steps(e) and (f) are performed by the provider remote from the storage of thediscrete normalized representations.
 15. A consumer feedback apparatusfor collecting, analyzing, and reporting information on goods andservices offered to a plurality of consumers by a provider of goods andservices, comprising: a kiosk stand for being located at a provider ofgoods and services to a plurality of consumers for collecting at leastone oral comment from at least one of said plurality of consumers; atouch-sensitive video display screen attached to said kiosk stand forbeing selectively operated by said at least one consumer; a controlleroperatively engaged to the display screen for displaying operationalinstructions for collecting said oral comment from said at least oneconsumer; a communicator for communicating said collected oral commentto a fuzzy-logic analyzer that interprets each oral comment and createsa normalized representation of said collected oral comment, saidanalyzer remote from said kiosk stand; and a reporter for reporting saidnormalized representation in a usable format, whereby said reporterprovides usable information to the provider for responding to said oralcomment.
 16. The consumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim 15,further comprising a recorder for recording said oral comment collectedfrom said at least one consumer.
 17. The consumer feedback apparatus asrecited in claim 15, further comprising means for associatingautomatically a time signal representative of a date and time with eachdiscrete oral comment, which time signal is included with saidnormalized representations.
 18. The consumer feedback apparatus asrecited in claim 15, wherein said useable information comprises acomment category, at least one descriptor, at least one dimension, andan attitude, which said useable information is representative of thediscrete oral comment; and wherein said reporter selects useableinformation for reporting based on at least one of said commentcategory, descriptor, dimension, and attitude.
 19. The consumer feedbackapparatus as recited in claim 15, further comprising a computer-basedstorage means for holding said oral comment and said normalizedrepresentation.
 20. The consumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim15, further comprising means for the provider remote from the analyzerto generate reports of selected normalized representations.
 21. Theconsumer feedback apparatus as recited in claim 15, further comprisingmeans for associating each oral comment with the said one of theplurality of consumers.
 22. The consumer feedback apparatus as recitedin claim 15, further comprising means for associating a unique coderepresentative of the said one of the plurality of consumers making saidoral comment, whereby comments by specific consumers can be tracked.